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Mouth pain over a year, no help or end in sight
I have had mouth pain for over a year. Mostly the tongue. I have seen several dentists, orthodontists, ear, nose & throat specialists. No one can seem to help me so now I contine searching for help and not sure where to turn. I want my life back and not be in constant pain as these issues have taken over my life.
I have taken care of my teeth and mouth my whole life. My dentist back in the 80’s decided to remove 4 molars to make room for my wisdom teeth, to date I have had 1 root canal and a few fillings and one wisdom tooth removed. The material in the crown after years started to cause me issues as I became allergic to the materials and this was replaced, I thought this was the reason for my tongue soreness on that side but wasn. I had an extra cusp on a top molar that jetted off the tooth towards the tongue that was pointy and thought this was another reason for my issue as it was poking my tongue.
Doctors in my area said there were no issues, but this issue has remained, after seeing my doctor and having bloodwork, I went to see the ENT. Bloodwork was normal and ENT stated it was burning mouth syndrome and this was the beginning of this cycle I have been on for over a year. Went to my childhood doctor for more bloodwork and sent me to a different ENT. The ENT felt it was the teeth causing the issue. The next dentist eventually replaced the crown, but a few teeth are still sharp to me, but they state they do not feel anything.
The ENT did an MRI to rule out this as a nerve issue and did a biopsy on my tongue as there was a bump this whole time and was getting bigger. It was a swollen saliva gland, and cancer was ruled out and they pointed back to the teeth as the issue. The back left 3 teeth and right-side has 2 teeth that cause pain but the back right side has been the worst through this whole ordeal that pokes and irritates the tongue and one tooth scratches my cheek. This has been painful causing my tongue with on-going soreness.
Resolution I have been told are the following:
Do nothing you will get used to it, wear a retainer, or put wax in the area. As you can see these are not realistic options for the rest of my life.
Procedures performed since the start of these issues:
Attempt to smooth problem areas.
The top right wisdom tooth was eventually pulled due to a cavity and that provided some relief.
Bottom right wisdom tooth has been smoothed almost flat, it’s a bit better but the side close to the tongue feels like a knife and irritates the tongue.
The top right molar had been filled by a dentist to cover the point of the extra cuspid on the back side, this made the tooth wider and sits on my tongue and feels like sandpaper and something is still pointy on it and something scraping my cheek as well, not enough to show major signs but can be felt by me.
The bottom left wisdom tooth feels sharp mostly around one cuspid area and rubs on the tongue.
The top left wisdom tooth has chips, pokes my cheek and it sits at an angle.
The top molar is shaped oddly and rubs on my tongue when I talk. I have been told it could be hypersensitivity or nerve issue. I do not believe either since when I wear a retainer the pain is not as severe. Also some smoothing has helped. I went off gabapentin to see if it was causing pain as I was on it for my back but have not had any change as far as my mouth. I now am getting headaches but maybe due to stopping gabapentin. I'm not sure where to turn.
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Don't want to sound foolish but what about getting all your teeth removed and getting dentures. My father did that after years of suffering and trying nerve numbing liquids to no relief. His mouth was temporarily sore as he got use to the false teeth, but now pain free
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2 Reactions@jwkelly72 not foolish at all. I cannot get a dentist to pull a single tooth unless it's rotting. I am even up for trying to crown the few that are sharp but no one will. I lack a little extra space and my tongue sits a little higher as I have mild to moderate bony tori. I do not know where to go next. I've seen at least 8 dentists. I am starting to look in another state as I feel like I've been to so many in ND. I dont enjoy doing anything anymore with my kids or hobbies as this has taken over my life. Thank you for your reply!!
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1 ReactionAbsolutely understand, try every painkiller out there, also read about certain herbal teas that are pain killers. I'm sorry you're suffering. I had some deep molar cavities as a kid and I just pulled those teeth out rather than suffer.
...as I read this subconsciously my tongue is slipping into four spaces left by having 4 molars removed; and when my mouth is closed each side of my tongue rests on two pointy parts of lower teeth; chew all food on right of mouth as only 1 missing there, 3 other side... so have an idea of what you are going through; however, do not have the mouth pain you described... and agree does appear there are several issues going on at the same time - just an odd thing that my tongue feels food or something trapped between 2 teeth yes dentist has examined and says nothing there so yes I would think it is an oversensitivity of our tongues/nerves etc... I so sympathize with you and it's a big decision to get all teeth removed - however if this is your wish I don't understand why dentists refuse to extract the remaining ones! The "what if" being if you do have all teeth removed and still have the mouth pain it will be very unsettling... hope get some more comments here that will help - have heard of burning mouth syndrome but not really familiar with it. Best of luck!!
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2 ReactionsDid I understand correctly that you had an allergic reaction to a crown that was removed, and that since the problem continued, it seemed logical that that wasn't the problem after all? I'd almost be tempted to suspect that there could (maybe) be some lingering inflammation from that allergic reaction? I believe I've read that burning mouth syndrome is known to co-occur with autoimmune disorders. It would seem to make intuitive sense to me that some kind of allergy/immune reaction could still be contributing. The trouble with that theory is that we understand very little about those kinds of reactions-- so we don't have a lot of tools to combat them.
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1 Reaction..gosh over the months read about something super sensitive with tongue also and cannot find it but will do another search.. it is like my tongue can feel every nook and cranny in my teeth all the time, and rubs along crooked teeth etc, if I find and think it pertains will put up here but really sounds like a lot more going on, with the pain - feel for you! J.
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1 ReactionSometimes dental work can cause Burning Mouth Syndrome.
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1 ReactionI am still searching for answers. My tongue is still in pain from teeth on the right side. A dentist has tried helping by crowning the top back molar, angling it at a slant, but it still hurts my tongue and feels sharp to tongue and cheek. This is the second crown he's tried (zirconia) so I've spent 3,000 and my mouth is in pain. The bottom back tooth is sharp on the tongue side. I had a brain mri and nothing showed. Just had a neck mri without contrast. It was the same as a year ago when I was having these issues. I have no nerve compression. I have congenital join c2 and c3. Some bulging discs at c3 and c4 and c4 and c5. And an arthritic joint at c3 the left side. Nothing that is explaining the mouth stuff. I have other symptoms but some I've had years, just worse like ears ringing fairly loudly. I haven't been able to do things I did 2 years ago. Nothing explains it. It's taken over my life, day and night. Very hard on my family as it's all I cam talk about due to pain. I have been to many dentists, ENT, neurology, general family doctor. I've tried getting I. To Mayo but they deny me. Not sure if I'm choosing the wrong department or my case is not severe enough. Maybe someone has a suggestion. I live in ND. I'm going to try the university of Minnesota dentistry. I am not sure where to turn. I can barely concentrate at work and I love my job so want a resolution so much.
Can someone check to see if you have Candida in your mouth, especially if you have been on antibiotics ??